After The Twilight
by Link the bae
Summary: The twilight war may be over but there are still some things to tend to, with the princess and hero forming a strong bond. /Lots of romantic and sexual tension between Zelda and Link. / Scottish Link. /Might include smut later/
1. New beginnings

The evening's sun was shining against their backs, as the Princess of Hyrule and the Hero of Twilight left the Gerudo Desert.  
Luckily for the two of them, the princess had enough magic to get them both out of the big, sandy wasteland, just enough for both to get to the cliff of the desert, near Lake Hylia.

They had to walk from now on.  
As displeased and exhausted as they were, they still made that sacrifice, if it meant to get back home.

Midna's last goodbye left them downhearted and depressed, the Twilight Princess became a part of them both, a good friend, a friend they weren't much fond of, but grew closer with by the time.  
Her departure was like a big loss to the two of them, letting them feel alone.

Neither of them spoke much to each other, besides Link asking the princess if she is alright, too hot or too tired to walk, as they were making their way down to Lake Hylia, to which she assured him that she's fine, but she thanked him anyway for looking out for her.

It was her turn to ask him, but all he told her was not to worry about him.  
Of course this made her worry about him even more, but she let him be for now. She thought he knew what was the best for himself.

It took them about half an hour until they completely got out of the sandy area and to notice the green, soft grass around their boots.  
They both let out a sigh of relief when they saw the shining surface of the lake's water.

The air by the lake was something else. It was clearer and fresher to breathe in. It felt good in their lungs, it really was an uplifting feeling.

So the Princess and the Hero made their way over to the water to take a short break, with the brunette monarch sitting down on a nearby rock.  
Zelda had taken off her gloves a while back, so now she was able to feel the texture of the rock.  
It was hard, cold and rough...just like the castle's walls and floors. She didn't really miss it, she had been stuck in there for the past long months, yet it was her home, a home which didn't feel like home.

After taking sips of the cool water and a refill of his waterskins, Link dunked his whole head into the water briefly, pulled his head back out, to wash the sweat, sand dust and dried blood out of his face and hair. The water made his dirty blond hair seem darker and longer as they clinged to his neck.

Zelda didn't even noticed she was staring at him while she kept petting the rock she was sitting on, like it were a pet.

The hero walked a bit off into a more open area, rolled his tongue in his mouth and let out a loud, sharp whistle.

The princess slightly got startled by this and noticed she was staring at the spot by the water he had been kneeling previously then faced his direction just right before he let out another, but longer, loud whistles.

He turned his head to her and explained before she could even ask, "This was fur Epona. She will hear it n' come lookin' fur us. It's better we keep movin', so it's easier fur her to find us."

She remembered his horse from the chase on horseback, where she helped him with her bow of light. She was a brave and smart horse and did not hesitate to follow her master's orders during that pursue, between all the mess and threats.

Zelda also just noticed this was the longest sentences he had spoken to her since they've met.  
Yes, he was a wolf the first two times and couldn't say anything to her, but the last times he spoke to her were mostly sentences containing three words, like "Are you okay?", or "Need a break?".

But this time she heard more of his voice. It was strangely soft and rough at the same time, as if he wasn't using it very often.

But mostly she noticed his dialect.

She could hear he was trying not to fall back into this dialect, though she still could hear it hidden within his tongue.

She liked it.

And she hoped to hear more from it.

She had gotten up from her precious rock and walked up to his side and nodded, "Let us go then."

Their walk up to the bridge of Hylia was, again, very quiet, with only Link asking the princess for her wellbeing.

Arriving at the top, Link whistled one last time as they made their way towards the open plains of Hyrule's fields.

As they were walking he heard the familiar stomping of hooves he was waiting for.

Epona slowed down into a trot as she came near both and stopped abruptly, almost bumping into Link and pushed her face into his chest.  
He immediately threw his arms around her, hugging her big head, "Hey girl! Ye did great!".

He kept on cooing her and completely forgot the princess behind him.  
She watched them, fascinated by their close bond. It just was so sweet to her.

He turned back to her and apologized for getting carried away like this, while Epona carefully nibbled on his hair and ear.

The monarch just shook her head and smiled at him, showing him that it's alright.  
She went over and petted Epona's nose.  
The mare stopped cleaning Link's head and leaned more into Zelda's hand, feeling very happy at the moment, first seeing her owner again and now getting a lot of affection.

The princess giggled softly at the horse's closeness, "She is so endearing and smart."

"She is.", Link walked up to Epona's side, held his hand out to Zelda to help her onto the horse.

Zelda declined the offer but thanked him regardless, swiftly got into the saddle and made herself comfortable.

He watched her get onto his horse. It surprised him how she managed to get on there so quickly with that dress she's wearing.

Zelda was happily petting the mare's neck, until she felt something pressed against her back- mostly her lower back. She straightened her back and turned her head to look. It was the hero, who placed himself onto the flat saddle right behind her.

"I'm sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

"It's fine.", she assured him.

He cautiously wrapped his arms around her to grab the reins, to lead Epona back towards Castle Town.

* * *

By the gates at Castle Town, Link hopped off his horse and took her reins to lead her better through the streets, which should be easier since it had become nighttime by the time they arrived.

It felt like a weirdly, cold loss for Zelda as he got off, she felt kind of comfortable and safe when he was sitting that close to her.  
He also had this calm and pleasant presence.  
And his smell was something unique...a soft natural smell, yet intense at the same time.  
Or maybe it just was the sweat.

She couldn't blame him though. His fights, not only against the dark Lord Ganondorf but their journey home did not really left him the time for a luxurious bath, he still did his duty and led the horse by the reins on foot.

The streets were empty except for a few stray cats and dogs, which she noticed were following them, mostly Link. He even gave them a gentle pat.  
It has been very quiet anyway, apart of the clatting of Epona's hooves on the city's stone.

As they neared the castle's gates Link noticed most of the guards were inspecting the castle grounds. It probably had to do something with Midna breaking the shield that surrounded the castle or even the explosion in the throne room after the twilight princess sent them out to the fields.

Two guards, one older and mature one and a much younger one heard the horse's hooves and began looking for the intruders and saw them. They ran over to stop them from going any nearer to the castle.

The younger guard raised his lance immediately to keep them on distance, "Halt! No one is allowed to enter this area withou-"

The hero interrupted him, grabbing the guard's weapon tightly, angry and worried about the princess's safety, "Oi! Cannae ye recognize yer own princess, ye fuckin' table-".

"Enough!"

It was now the princess' turn to stop the hero. She didn't want him to hurt one of her guards, even when she found his protective behavior very appealing. And the guards were just doing their job.

And there was this dialect again, even stronger. He didn't even notice it at first, how he was speaking in the company of the princess...he really need to watch his tongue.  
But the princess didn't seem upset or angry, she was smiling and standing between the guards and him. Wait, when did she get off the horse?

After noticing she was the princess, they immediately fell to their knees, apologizing for their behavior.

The rest of the guards and soldiers, that wandered and inspected the Castle grounds, noticed the ruckus and came rushing to where the others were standing- or kneeling for that matter. But they just saw both guards on in front of a man, dressed in green and a woman. They were confused at first but then realized the woman was indeed their princess!

Now they all followed suit and dropped to their knees like the first two, feeling embarrassed but relieved at the same time to see their princess again, telling her how glad they were, but the monarch made them raise again. They still made a quick bow and apologized again.

"Thank you all for your concern but I am fine. Yet before we continue with this matter, I have someone important to introduce,", she told them, then gestured towards the mysterious man, "This is Link from the Ordona province. He's the one, who, not only fought against the Twilight War with all his powers, but also ended it and he shall be treated with the same respect you all do with me and has earned himself the title of a hero. The hero of Twilight. You also shall adress him with such, unless he states otherwise himself."

They all bowed briefly again and replied with "As you wish, zour Highness."

Then she added while petting Epona's side, "And someone please bring his horse to the stable master and let him take care of her."

Then they all watched their princess walk off into the castle, with the hero by her side. Some returned to their posts, some followed them, wanting answers of what happened and very few stayed at the spot, three to be exact, but one grabbed the mare's reins and brought her to he stables, so now there are only the first two guards left.

"You think he actually did it?", asked the younger one and the older one just laughed and gave him a clap on his shoulder, "I've seen the fiery look in his eyes, he had seen and done some things and I'm sure the princess wouldn't lie to us like this.  
Also I saw how scared you were as he threatened you!"

"Man, why are you like this?"

Inside the castle, Zelda felt heartbroken as she saw the portraits and armors scattered around broken, but not only the decorations but the old banners too. All burned and teared up, the walls and some parts of the floor needed repairing, almost everything did. But mostly did the throne room, but this was the least of her worries. She may have been inside the castle the whole time but most of it she had been locked up in her own bedroom, rarely got out of it. Her own home got demolished right under her nose and she couldn't do anything.

Link sensed how she was feeling at the moment and didn't want her to fall back into the sadness, "A'm sorry fur everythin', but we can fix it. I will help gather folk fur the repair. I know some gorons who would gladly help."

She looked up at him and smiled, a bit too melancholic to him, "Thank you, but as much as I appreciate it, it feels like I would be asking too much of you. You should rest and return home. You've done too much, Hero."

He just shook his head and said, looking back into her eyes, "I will go back n' check if everyone's alright, but I thought aboot stayin' here fur a longer while n' help wit' stuff...like the soldiers n' guards. A've seen what they're capable of...or rather what they're not of."

"They're a bunch of wee cry babies n' need proper trainin'.  
N' I'll gladly help ye to get back to yer feet.", he finished and smiled at her.

She looked back at him wordlessly, pretty surprised by his offer. He seemed serious about it, he always seemed so serious, but his smile, his goddess damned smile was contagious, she couldn't do anything else but smile back at him.

"You're doing way too much and I can never thank you enough for it."

"Ye don't need to-"

He automatically stopped speaking as she placed her hand gently on his arm. She continued, "Actually I may have something to give you, if you accept that is. Making you my Champion, Knight and General of my soldiers.

If I could, I would give you more. Much more. But right now it's still very hard but I will try my best to give you anything you need."

Link didn't know what to say, being a Knight or General was just so much, but this? He could have never thought about it before. Him being a rancher, a nobody, becoming the princess's personal Champion, the title of a Knight and the rank of a General?

Zelda looked at him, waiting for for any kind of reaction, but he seemed overwhelmed.  
"Of course you don't have to accept it now, or at all. As I mentioned, I would give you anything you need, Link."

That's the first time she adressed him by his name. It...sounded good coming from her mouth, but anything from her did sound amazing. If it meant hearing her say it more often, he'd gladly stayed by her side, helping her with whatever she needed help with.

"Yes, I accept. I accept n' become yer Champion, Knight n' General, fuck- even your lapdog if needed. I will support ye through everything, Princess."

She giggled at his enthusiasm and the fact that he actually sweared while talking to her directly. He easily did let the swears slip out of him when being carried away. It did fit more to him, in a natural way.  
"You can call me Zelda, no need for the formalities. In fact you're one of the very few, who are allowed to, if I may add."

This is getting better with every second.

He had this smile on his face again and laughed softly. Which she thought even topped his smile, "I actually do have a request, Zelda."

There she was smiling again at him, not only because of his own smile and laugh but the way he said her name. Pronounced by him, it sounded adorable yet fierce. Not sure if it was just her swooning at his voice or his rough country dialect.

But now she was indeed curious what kind of request he had, "What is it?"

"A bath"


	2. Portrait

Six months have passed.

Six months since the Twilight war ended. Since Hyrule is getting very slowly back to its original beauty. It has been stressful and a lot of work not only for the princess and the hero but for whole Hyrule. Houses and other constructs are getting repaired or even a complete rebuild, making villages and the capital, Castle Town, more robust and more beautiful than before.

On behalf of the hero, even Kakariko is getting some of it. The hotel and shops are on their way to new glory and will be good travel spots for merchants.

His family in Ordon could not be prouder of him. They all have not been any happier when he came back, especially the children. Yet he only stayed for about two weeks. It was difficult for him to switch back to his old life. It was surprisingly too quiet and too monotone. He became too anxious and restless to be around the animals. They sensed it and became stressed too.

This kind of work did not satisfy him anymore. He knew it was better to return to the castle. So he did.

Now he is staying at the castle as General for the princess' soldiers. In the first weeks of him staying at the castle, the soldiers thought he would be too strict and hard with them. Well he was strict, he does take it serious, but he has been also very perceptive, especially with the newer ones. At first a few were joking about him being too young himself to be their mentor and General. He showed them not to underestimate people by their age or looks by beating them in fighting tests with a simple wooden sword.

But now they appreciate him. Sometimes he told them a few stories about his quests, so they might understand about what exactly happened and who helped him. He did not tell them everything of course, he left out the parts of him being a literal wolf and Midna. He was not even sure if they would believe it anyway. But what they believed, was him being the wielder of the Master Sword, it was difficult not believe it, since he did carry it around with him for about a month until he decided it was the best to bring it back into the deep depths of the woods, where it should rest, even when it was an amazing sword. He will miss it.

Since then he has been using the sword Rusl originally made for the Royal family. Link tried giving it to Zelda but she insisted he should keep it instead.

Now after six months, Link is still not getting used to the busy and hectic life within the castle walls. Servants and maids running errands everywhere. Construction workers repairing most of the damage, Ganondorf and Zant's minions caused.

Luckily most of the decorations were easy to be replaced.

The princess even tried convincing the hero to pose as a model for a new painting. He declined as politely as he could but the princess did not let it down and often brought this subject back up in conversations, to which he tried to change it again or even pretended to be too busy.

Right now he is sitting in the garden on a bench made of firm and sturdy wood, with a piece of wood in his right hand and a dagger in the other, carving a small, dog out of the wood. The princess sat down on the bench, right next to him. Hands neatly folded on her lap, she watched him silently. She could tell, by the twitch of his ear towards her direction, that he already heard her coming. She still tried not to disturb his concentration and fiddled with her thumbs.

He let out a soft sigh and looked at his carving, not completely satisfied with the outcome of his work.

Without looking away from the wooden dog, he began talking, "Ye also think it's ugly?"

She looked at the dog, he is holding out in his hand, "I think it's adorable. What makes you think that?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "Just unhappy wit' it."

"Don't have so high expectations of yourself or your works. Even if things may not come out perfect for you, doesn't mean others will see it equally. I personally think it's adorable."

He looked up at her unimpressed, not really influenced by her statement,

"I just wanted a simple 'yes' or 'no'"

"No, its not ugly."

He placed the figure in her hands. "Keep it then.", he said simply, then stood up and returned the dagger back in its sheath on his belt, then held out his right arm for her to take, just like how they always were walking when being besides each other.

Zelda had gotten up right after him, with the small, new gift in her right hand and held it carefully and linked her left arm with his already waiting one, having finally her excuse to hold onto his biceps again. She could feel he is not wearing a chainmail, in fact he is not even wearing a thick tunic today, only the simple white shirt he usually wears underneath his tunics. It felt soft in her hand and she was glad that she were not wearing her cloves on this day, They both started their walking routine around the castle's garden, but instead of looking at the pretty flowers, she kept her gaze on the carved dog in her hand. It just seemed so small and delicate, it was adorable to her. She loved it.

"I actually came to you in the first place, because I wanted to ask you something,", she started and looked from the dog back up to Link when he stopped walking and saw he looked a bit more annoyed now.

"I ain't posin' fur a damn paintin'! How come yer so obsessed wit' havin' a paintin' o' me?"

"You're the hero of Hyrule and deserve a place and memorial here in the castle. If you do not want this painting be done, so let it be a monument at least."

"Ye can consider the monument when A'm dead."

She let go of his arm and stood in front of him and poked a finger against his chest, "Don't say that! I just want a simple painting of you. It doesn't even have to be hung in one of the public rooms of the castle if you'd like. I can keep it in either my bedchamber or office so not everyone will see it."

He rubbed the spot on his chest where she poked him. Her nails were not that long, but long enough for them to hurt him slighty when being poked in his chest.

He stared at her for a moment, thinking, then grinned at her and leaned forward to her, "Now I know what kinda paintin' ye want o' me n' why yer so obsessed wit' havin' it done, but A'm sorry, Princess, I'd lik' to keep ma clothes on in this "portrait"."

She hit him across the chest but still giggled, ears and cheeks as crimson as a tomato, "Not this kind of painting, you dog!"

"Wolf."

"Doesn't matter, you're awful regardless."

"Well, excuse me, Princess. But if ye want, I can mak' ye an offer."

She stopped her giggles and now shows big interest in his offer, "Oh really?"

"I will pose fur a portrait, but only when yer on the paintin' too.", he did not have that dumb grin on his face anymore but instead he was smiling at her sweetly, hoping she will accept that at least.

"Why me? I'm not a hero.", she wondered instead.

"Whaddya mean 'no hero'? Without ye, Midna would hav' died. Ye deserve just as much recognition."

Her expression saddened at the mention of Midna, remembering Link, in his canine form, carrying the with light filled, half dead, shadow being into her chambers and her temporary giving up her own powers to the imp to survive in the light.

He saw the change of her mood in her face and took her left hand with his right, rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand, "A'm sorry, didnae mean to mak' ye sad."

She smiled again, shaking off the brief melancholic feeling, "It's fine. I just hope she is well."

"I bet she is. Ye know her.", grinning back at her, he was happy that her mood changed back to the better.

She went back to his side and linked her arm with his again and they continued their walk. While they were making their way back into the castle, she remembered their previous talk about the painting. She knew he wouldn't want to pose for hours for a portrait of himself, he never seemed that self-centered. And she knew that she will not get him to do it until she agrees to his request.

Together they walked upstairs, to where the princess's office is and stopped in front of the door. She let go of his arm and walked to the door, grabbing the handle to open it. But before doing so, she turned to Link and smiled at him, "Thank you."

"Fur?", he asked. He did not know what exactly she is thanking him for. His head was slightly tilted to the side in confusion.

It reminded her of a dog. A dog that is trying to understand the human language. Or a wolf for his matter. Him in his canine form, looking like that. She did not know why she was finding this so adorable but this picture in her head did not let her lose her smile.

Before she completely will lose track of his question, she answered him, "Just for accompanying me, for being here in the castle, for all your help around here. And for the cute little dog. I love dogs.", she smiled and looked at the carved figur in her hand.

"Ah, that's why ye so fond o' me."

Her eyes darted back to his, narrowing them, but kept smiling, "Did you not just say that you are a wolf and not a dog?"

He shrugged his shoulders and grinned back at her, "eh, same thing."

"If you say so, my _dear Hero_.", shaking her head at his answer, still amused, she turned back to the door, opened it and stepped inside. Only turning her head to look at him, she said, "You should go back to work, before anyone starts missing you.", she then smiled big at him before closing the door.

Link looked at the closed door a bit dumbfounded for forgetting that he only planned to take a short break and left his soldiers on their own. He cursed quietly and jogged back to the training grounds, hoping they did not do anything stupid or even hurt themselves in his absence.

As he arrived there, he is surprised and even slightly proud to see them occupying themselves with training. Some against each other, some against dummies, and the beginners are getting better each day. The older ones are more skilled and experienced than the greenhorns but they still listened to him, amazed at his experience in his young age.

But he also still learned from them. He taught them what he experienced during his quest and they taught him what they have learned during their previous training.

One of the mentors, named Hank, a middle aged, bearded and raven colored hair with a few gray hairs, also a veteran, now a good friend of Link, saw him standing there quietly, watching the others train and decided to walk over to him. He did so and bumped with his shoulder into the hero's playfully to get his attention and stood beside him, still keeping an eye on the soldiers, "How was your date with the princess?"

The blond looked at the older man, ears dropped in annoyance, yet the tips of his ears and cheeks slightly turning red in embarrassment.  
"It ain't a date! We just talked n' I walked her to her office.", he tried to keep his voice down so the others will not hear him and maybe start thinking funny business about his princess and himself.

Hank laughed and slapped a hand on Link's shoulder, making him wince a bit from the impact, "Whatever ya say, lad!", then he got a bit more serious in his tone, "Anyway...let me tell ya somethin, boy. The princess used to be known as the 'ice princess'. All the years she seemed without any passion, people would say she's emotionless and cold. But these past months, she seemed to actually smile and laugh more and more often, since you've been here."

Link was staring at the ground as he listened to the older man and looked up at him when he mentioned the part of the princess smiling more. He did not know how she has been like before. The first time meeting her, he just thought she seemed serious and melancholic because of the dilemma with the twilight.

"Ye sure it ain't just cuz' the war is finally over?", he asked the veteran.

"I'm sure, boy!", he laughed and gave the hero a, now softer, pat on his shoulder, walked over to a bench, gesturing him to follow and sat down on it with the younger general.

He continued, when hey both were sitting, "I mean sure, the peace does her good and I'm happy to see her like this. But she wasn't always like this. I've been here since my early twenties, before she was born. The Queen and the King were both great people. But then her mother became ill, not that long after the princess was born and it kept on like this for the next two winters. She didn't leave the bed chambers that often anymore, we guards have seen her less and less. The only people seeing her were the King himself and her maids who tried their best to take good care of her. The little baby princess couldn't be with her, fearing of becoming ill too. A close maid of her mother's, Impa, you know her, basically became her surrogate mother until the Queen was allowed to see her daughter again, but her mother didn't make it to the third winter...It left her father heartbroken.  
Impa always did her best for the Queen and King, so she did too with the princess. Trained her, with weapons and manners, raised her like her own daughter."

The hero listened carefully, remembering the matured woman, who is by the princess' side most of the time. She always appeared to be strict and direct, but more like in a motherly way. Now he knew why. She also seems to be very fond of him, becoming very happy, almost excited even, when he is near her. But when she is with the princess and he arrives, she usually just leaves quickly without a word, besides a greeting when she passes him. She did not really seem to be a busy woman, nor does she dislike him, so he really did not know why she kept running off like that. At least he knew now from where Zelda got the skill of a marksman with the bow.

After Hank's short break and letting Link find his train of thoughts again, he continued, "We all knew how close her parents were and how hard it must have been for her father. Especially cause' he in fact was not the one of the royal blood. He married into the Royal family and didn't know how to rule a kingdom all by himself, most of it did the council and mentors. He himself appeared to be too overwhelmed, as King and as father."

"Yet she was a happy child. Smart, full of energy and even a bit of a tomboy. The King in the other hand turned colder. Until to the day he also passed away. We didn't know how or from what exactly. Many would say of heartbreake.  
Could of just been a heart attack, goddess know.  
But since then it seemed like the princess lost all of her joy."

Link sat there quietly, listening and looked down at his hands, deep in thoughts. He tried to imagine how it would have been for her, losing everything that was worth to you. He never knew his parents himself, he only heard stories from Uli and Rusl, as they raised him like he was their own son. His father died, defending the caravan his pregnant mother was in from bulblins, so his mother, without having enough time to grief, had to keep traveling to the south, alone. Yet she had to stop in Ordon because she went into premature labour. Uli and Rusl gladly took her in and did their best to help her through it, but she was already weakened and had a stressful pregnancy, with losing too much blood during childbirth, she gave birth to a small boy, to which she named Link. She did not make it through that night, so the Ordonas took him in and raised him. He could not really miss his parents, the way the princess would for hers, for he had never known them.  
Uli and Rusl may not be his parents by blood, he still loves them like they are, and he is grateful for them.

He looked back to Hank, "Why are ye tellin' me this?"

"Cause' I want you to know what kind of impact you have on her. All them years, she hasn't been showing much signs of happiness, even isolating herself more and more and now since you're here, I see her smile and hear her laugh. She's doing better with ya. And I want to thank you for being here."

"I... I dinnae know what to say.. A'm just bein' a friend to her.", Link stuttered a bit, kind of overwhelmed by the hearty thank from the elder.

"No need to get so flushed, boy! I'm just glad to see you two getting so well."

"A'm not doin' anythin' special.", Link's ears dropping from feeling awkward, not exactly knowing how to react to the, usually, grim and strict, man.

Hank stood up and placed his hand on Link's shoulder, "It may seem like nothing big to ya, but I see even more to it. You should take the rest of the day off, I've got this", giving the hero's shoulder a pat. He then walked away, before Link could say anything against it.

Now he sat there alone in thoughts. But what did he mean with 'seeing even more to it'? He was a bit confused but tried to ignore that statement. Still taking the advice, he left Hank with the work.

It was late in the afternoon, so he had plenty of time left to spend for the rest of his day. The spring air was mostly cold, especially in the early mornings or evening and he had been outside for long enough, so he decided to go back inside the castle and look for things he could do.

He quickly found himself walking around aimlessly, looking at the interior decorations.  
He remembered, not long ago, accidentally breaking a pot. He walked into the pillar, the pot was standing on, because he got distracted by looking to the princess as she was exiting a room. The pot fell onto the marble floor with a loud clatter, shattering into big pieces. Embarrassment and fear immediately striked him, expecting her to get upset and yell, or at least just scold him, but instead he saw her smile to herself and heard her call him a 'clumsy buffoon', before leaving him alone with the mess. Of course he cleaned it up afterwards.

This time he is looking out for his surroundings, making sure not to break more than that, but while he is deep in his thoughts of trying not to walk into more pillars, he bumped, not into a pillar, but a person. Luckily it was not that hard to make the other person to fall over like the pot did but he still had a strong force.

"A'm sorry!", He grabbed the person's shoulders out of reflex, before they could fall over. The person was standing with the back to him, so all he did see were light chocolate brown hair and immediately knew who he ran into, making the situation worse than it already is.

The princess turned around, completely flabbergasted, which turned quickly into a smile and a soft laugh as she saw him, "Do you maybe need a pair of glasses?"

While she was giggling at his clumsiness, he felt his face turning hot, again being embarrassed for being so careless. He never allowed himself to be like this out in the fields or woods, where monsters and wild animals could attack him at every opportunity they had. He really started to wonder how and why he became so inattentive sometimes around the castle. Training with the soldiers and recruits seemed perfectly fine to him.

Now he felt something softly tap the bottom of his chin, the princess' finger to be exact.

"Did you hear me?", she asked him, trying to get his attention, as he just was staring at the ground, lost in thoughts, again.

He looked back up at her, ears still low, looking like a whipped dog, "A'm sorry, I just git ma head in the clouds, I guess. I should hav' been more-", he instinctively stopped his apologizing, as she waved him off.

"It's fine, Link. Nothing has happened. Yet. I just hope you are not overthinking things?", he shook his head no,  
"Good. But I still want you to take more breaks from time to time, or take a day off.", before he could break in, saying something against it, she added, poking her finger against his chest, "If I see you overwork I will personally force you to take a break."

"How so?", now he started to get cocky.

"I will order you to.", she knew damn well, not even he himself will do anything against any of her orders. Not that she would order him around all day, in fact she merely does need to ask him for something and he will immediately jump to the task.

Like a dog.

What will he do if she would tell him to sit? Would he fetch objects she threw?  
It was for the best, not to mention this part though.

She was sure, that he is still able to say no if he wanted to. Or he just tries to avoid it completely the best way he could like he did with her wanting this portrait. At least she finally got him to accept it earlier, she just has to be on it too. That was fine to her, since she posed enough for paintings, since she was a small child. A way too inpatient child for a princess, sometimes, but she learned to sit still for hours.

Before she could say something, he chimed in, "Orderin' me aroond? Is that supposed to be a threat? A'm used to it from a certain Twilight Princess anyway.", he seemed to shrug off the last part.  
"Besides ye never could order me aroond. Yer too kind to me."

She smiled, happy that he was returning back to his teasing behavior, not seeming like an ashamed, quiet child that has done anything bad anymore. She found this version of him more appealing,  
"Depends, my _dear Hero_, if you anger me enough, I might have to get harsh with you. Dominant if you will."

Here he was grinning again.

"Aha.", was all he could comment on the last part of her sentence. It did not even take him some of his deviant remarks for her to shoot him a glance, saying alone with her facial expression 'Don't you even dare' in a nonverbal way. She knew exactly what he was thinking of at the moment.

He sorely raised both of his hands innocently, "I didnae say anythin'."

She narrowed her eyes at his, "Your 'aha' said enough. I know what you were thinking of, but no, not this kind of dominant, you rascal. You know exactly what I have meant.", she sighed to get focused on becoming serious again, "Anyway. I have already gotten- and spoken to a portraitist, who is willing to work on the portrait. We have plenty of time for her to start working on it. But I need to know if you are willing to."

"A'm always willin'-", he started, directly trying to go for something dirty again, but got interrupted by the princess, "Don't even start."

She started to walk down the corridor, with the hero immediately on her heel, like a good dog following its owner, she would say.

"A'm just pullin' yer shank.", he chuckled.

"I don't even know what a shank is, but I will be pulling something of yours, if you won't stop.", she abruptly stopped walking, almost making him run into her again, and turned around to face him, now pointing her index finger at his nose, her nail softly brushing the tip of his nose. This made him notice, that she was not wearing her gloves again. She was wearing them less often lately. He thought it did fit her and looked more natural. Or maybe he just liked her small, petite hands.

He leaned back out of reflex, showing a toothy grin at her again, "What exactly do ye wanna pull?"

She expected this kind of answer already and swiftly moved her hand, from his nose to his right ear and took a hold of the tip between her fingertips, purposely digging her nails into the skin of his ear and pulled firmly, "This."

The Hero usually appeared to have little to no physically weaknesses, yet he winced loudly, with several 'ow's coming from him, almost stumbling over in the direction she had pulled. His ears were more sensitive than most other body parts, but she was aware of that now.  
He grabbed her hand and pushed it away from his ear, but he was not mad at her, he could never be.  
Instead both were giggling, with Zelda rubbing his ear in an apologizing way, "I'm sorry, but at least I know now what to go for when you start misbehaving."

This reminded him of Midna. She always used to pull his ears when he did not listen to her, or when she just wanted to annoy him, mostly in his wolf form, when she was sitting on his back, riding him like a horse. The Light and Twilight Princesses seemed to be very similar, even when they were the exact opposite.

"Abusive, aye? Might as well strap a collar on ma neck n' chain me up, wull ye?"

"Now you are just getting kinky.", she gave his cheek a soft pat, "You should clean yourself up and get ready, I will come get you in about half an hour.", she then started to walk in another direction than he was going for.

"That's fair.", he replied quietly.

"And dress up more nicely."

"As ye wish, yer Highness."

"And watch where you walk!", she shouted back, laughing a bit to herself.

"I git it, woman!"

As she said, exactly half an hour later, she went to his room to meet him, but dressed in a different gown now. A long but comfortable dress, looking similar to the one she normally wears, with long, tight sleeves. But this one is completely blue, like the color of her eyes, emphasizing them.

She knocked at his door softly, knowing not getting a verbal answer from him, so she waited for him to come out by himself instead.  
She indeed did not even have to wait long for him, but she did not expect him to take long anyway. What she also did not expect, was for him to actually wear his green hero tunic again, the last time was when they both returned to the castle, and he finally receiving a hot bath, in his new own quarters. She never saw him wear it again after that.

"Oh! You are wearing the hero's clothes again- In fact, I quite missed it."

What else she was missing was the green, floppy hat, he used to wear along with the tunic, "Where is the hat?"

"What?"

One of her hands went through his hair to fix it the best she could, "Your hat. Where is it?"

Confusion is written on his face. What would he need the hat for? He always found it annoying anyway, but even Midna wanted him to keep it on all the time.  
"The wardrobe?"

Now a pat on the top of his head, "Get it."

"I dinnae even need it."

"Go, fetch."

He rolled his eyes but did as she asked for- or rather demanded and got the long hat and placed it on his head, then went back to her. She looked satisfied now.

Together they walked to the castle's huge library. But not for the countless of books there but for the artist waiting there for them.  
As they arrived, the portraitist was already eager to greet not only the princess but the hero himself. She did a brief bow to the princess then the hero, "I'm glad you finally arrived! My name's Claire and it's a pleasure to finally meet you and to even paint your, may I add handsome, face on canvas!", she skipped over to where her easel was standing, "I've prepared everything I need already, just you sit down and get comfortable."

The monarch has known her for some time already and knew painting was one of her biggest hobbies, so having the chance to paint the famous Hero of Hyrule was a great accomplishment for the young painter. She found Claire's eager personality sweet. 

She went to the love seat, opposite of the painter and sat down. The, now with faintly red colored cheeks and ears, hero joined her, sitting right next to the princess. He was not sure himself why he was getting flushed. Because of the unexpected compliment of the sweet, young lady? Or because he has to sit this close to the princess on the love seat? Usually he does not mind the latter.

How was he supposed to sit anyway? Where should he place his hands? Was the princess having enough room?  
He felt something soft on his thigh. It was Zelda's hand, "You are too stiff. This will take a while so it is better to sit natual and comfortable."

"If I would sit comfy or natural, I would tak' up the whole seat. How am I supposed to sit?"

He really seemed too uncomfortable at the moment. She even noticed he did not comment anything on what she said about him being too stiff.

Claire was aware of the tension the hero had, "Okay I've got an idea. Try to focus on me and not on how you 'have to' sit. Just on me."

He nodded, re-positioning himself one last time and tried to keep his focus on the painter. He had to admit himself, that she looked quite cute. It made it easier for him to actually keep his gaze on her.  
He did not even notice how the princess was sitting closer to him and took his left hand in hers, rubbing her thumb over the back of it, where the mark of the Triforce was. And Claire was doing her best with distracting him from the awkwardness, by talking to him, asking him simple questions, like his favourite color or animal. It helped him a bit to stand throught this.

It took Claire almost three hours to finish the first layers on the canvas, and since the paint has to dry, she suggested to take a break and continue on one of the next days.  
She thanked them for their time and the hero for his cooperation and honesty with answering her questions and left them alone in the huge room.

It felt for Link as if it had been an eternity since he last took a breath. He was now leaned back on the seat, relieved. He also felt the tension he had on his shoulders. He still was not feeling the hand on his thigh until she started to move it around.

He turned his head and looked to her, seeing that she was looking somewhere else, most likely lost in her own thoughts. He then looked down at the hand and watched the way she slow dragged her nails around his thigh, so light it almost felt ghostly. It felt too good for him to interrupt her train of thoughts, fearing that she will notice and stop.

Or maybe it would be the best for him to stop her, since she was dangerously close to his crotch and he wanted to avoid another awkward situation. But before he could say or note anything to her, she already stopped moving her hand, rested her hand on his thigh for a short moment, before giving it one last gentle pat, as she stood up. With her last action it seemed like she was fully aware of what she has been doing with her hand the whole time but, for unknown reasons to him, kept her hand in the position it was in.

Now he saw that she was looking at him, looking happy, "Thank you. For changing your mind and doing this with me. I really think you did well."

He slowly got up, arching his back until hearing and feeling the satisfying crack of his spine, from sitting too long in one position, "How can ye sit fur so long doin' nothin'?"

She just shrugged at that and began walking to the door, "I've been doing this for years in council meetings. But this here was rather pleasant for me."

"Cuz' ye were pettin' me the whole time.", he quickly brushed past her and opened the door and waited for her to walk out.

"I know," she walked out of the room and, again, dragged her nails very softly along his thighs as she passed him, very close to his groin again, but on purpose this time, "And I know you were enjoying it too."

He kept standing there for a while, loss for words, trying to understand what exactly this was for.  
He kept his eyes on her backside, while she was walking down the hall, towards the dinner room. He did not really know what to do, so he decided to follow her, muttering as he did, "Ye fuckin' weapon."

"I heard that."

"Good."


End file.
